 AGRICULTURE AND ALLIED SECTORS

The agricultural growth pattern during the Sixth Plan period has to take into account the immediate as well as the long-term needs of agricultural commodities both for domestic consumption and for export. The highest priority will be accorded to bridging the gap prevailing between actual and potential farm yields even at current levels of technology through the removal of the constraints responsible for this gap. The untapped yield reservoir is quite high in most of the farming systems in the country and thereby serves as a source of optimism for achieving accelerated growth. Both agriculture and fisheries will have to receive concurrent attention through the de- velopment of appropriate packages of technology, services and public policies, which can help to enhance production from the soil as well as the sea and thereby improve the income of farmers and fishermen. For achieving greater efficiency of farm management attention to non- monetary inputs is as essential as to cash inputs.

9.2 The pathway of agricultural advance so far adopted in the developed nations as well as in parts of India relies heavily on increasing consumption of non-renewable forms of energy it is obvious that finite sources cannot be exploited in an exponential manner. Agriculture, being the most important solar energy harvesting enterprise, is an invaluable source of renewable wealth. However, even this resource will become non-renewable if damage is done to basic We support systems like soil and water and the environment. The highest priority should hence go to the protection and improvement of basic agricultural assets. Genetic diversity in plants, animals and fish will have to be conserved and studied with regard to the use of genes present in such collections.

9.3 The agricultural strategy during the eighties will place increasing emphasis on integrated approaches to pest control, nutrient and energy supply, and also to production, conservation, consumption and trade. The triple alliance of weeds, pests and pathogens will have to be fought through an appropriate blend of genetic, agronomic, biological and chemical methods of pest control. In the area of nutrients supply, organic and biological sources of fertilisers will have to be harnessed in addition to increasing the supply of mineral fertilisers. Phosphorus management and recycling require special attention since phosphorus is a non-renewable resource. The care and maintenance of soil health as well as plant and animal health will have to be carried out with the help of the local community. Integrated energy supply systems will have to be based on the use of solar and wind energy, biogas, village wood lots in addition to elec- tricity and petroleum products. These systems will also be so designed as to reduce energy losses.

9.4 Three major groups of factors influence stability of production- weather, pest epidemics and public policies. Pest epidemics can be kept under control through proper pest surveillance and plant pro- tection measures. Public policies in the area of agrarian reforms and pricing, marketing and distribution can also be tailored to stimulate production. Weather aberrations are, however, beyond human control. Therefore, it is essential that contingency plans are developed, particularly in areas which are prone to drought and floods for meeting different weather probabilities. The overall strategy for minimising the adverse impact of aberrant weather will be: (a) to introduce crop life-saving techniques, (b) to popularise alternative cropping patterns based on weather conditions; and (c) to introduce compensatory production programmes in irrigated areas and in off- seasons. Steps will have to be taken during the Sixth Plan period to systematise efforts in the field of disaster management with regard to human, animal and plant populations.

9.5 The Sixth Plan will thus present many challenges and opportunities. Since food occupies the first place in the hierarchical needs of man, we can neglect agriculture only at the risk of economic instability.

INDIAN AGRICULTURE IN THE EIGHTIES

9.6 Starting from the beginning of this century, three major phases can be identified in our agricultural evolution. The first phase from 1900 to 1947 was marked by a near stagnation in farming as is clear from a growth rate of about 0.3 per cent per annum achieved in agricultural production during this period. Phase-II extending from 1950 to 1980 has been marked by considerable advances in the process of modernisation of agriculture, thanks to the steps taken in the development and spread of (a) technologies based on scientific research; (b) wide range of services; and (c) public policies in land reform, pricing, procurement and distribution. As a result, agricultural production grew at an annual compound rate of 2.8 per cent during 1967-68 to 1978-79. The third phase which has begun in the eighties will be marked by the need for greater attention to mar-

keting and trade, and to institutional frameworks which can help to minimise the handicaps of small and marginal farmers and maximise the benefits for intensive agriculture offered by small holdings.

9.7 The agrarian structure of our rural economy is such that small and marginal farmers cultivate nearly 73 per cent of the operational holdings in the country although they handle only about 23 per cent of the cultivated area. Their total earnings from farming alone hence tend to be small and, in unirrigated areas, also uncertain. The long- term answer to this problem does not lie in steps like writing off loans and fixation of procurement prices at levels which will further reduce the already low levels of consumption of farm products. It is, therefore, proposed during this Plan to introduce a 3-pronged strategy to improve the economic well-being of small and marginal farmers and share croppers:

(1) Improving the productivity and income from small holdings through detailed advice on land and water use based on the following 4 criteria:

(a) Ecology: Integrating ecological considerations in land use patterns which would help to avoid the problems of waterlogging, salinisation, erosion, etc. in irrigated areas and to elevate and stabilise production in un-irrigated are-as 'through water harvesting and conservation. Also, contingency plans to suit different weather probabilities will be prepared and introduced according to seasonal conditions.

(b) Economics: Since most of our farmers have low input purchasing and risk taking capacity, it is essential that the land use patterns suggested both in irrigated and unirrigated areas should be based on considerations of costs, returns and risks. Also, marketing opportunities will have to be carefully studied and appropriate advice given to farmers, so that their efforts are adequately rewarded. The economic issues involved in the entire production-trade-consumption chain will have to be gone into.

(c) Energy: The and water use pattern should be based upon the optimum utilisation of the available forms of renewable and non-renew- able forms of energy.

(d) Employment: The aim of land use should be to optimise the opportunities for gainful employment and to make it possible for introducing labour diversification and subsidiary occupations for landless labour families. State Land Use Boards assisted by a Central Land Use Commission will pay priority attention to the reorientation of current patterns of land use on the above lines.

(2) Farmers' own organisations for storage and marketing particularly of perishable commodities will be promoted since this will help to protect small and marginal farmers from exploitation by middlemen. Such organisations would be provided by Government with appropriate support in the areas of training and trade.

(3) Diversification of opportunities for income' through the introduction of subsidiary occupations under IRDP as well as lean season employment through NREP will be undertaken so as to enhance and stabilise rural incomes.

9.8 In the eighties, public policy measures which can help to stimulate production by' small and marginal farmers as well as consumption by the rural and urban poor will have to be developed carefully. Adhoc measures introduced without a proper action reaction analysis as temporary palliatives, may in the long run do more harm than good. Since agriculture is a State subject, State Governments have a particularly important role as well as responsibility in this respect.

OBJECTIVES AND STRATEGY

9.9 The aims of the agricultural programmes during the Sixth Plan period would be:

(a) to consolidate the gains already achieved;

(b) to accelerate the pace of implementation of land reforms and 'institution building for beneficiaries;

(c) to extend the benefits of new technology to more farmers, cropping systems and regions and to promote greater farm management efficiency through concurrent attention to cash and non-cash inputs;

(d) to make agricultural growth not only an instrument of maintaining an effective national food security system but also a catalyst of income and employment generation in rural areas.

(e) to promote scientific land wateruse patterns based on considerations of ecology, economics, energy, conservation and employment generation; and

(f) to safeguard the interests of both producers and consumers by attending to the needs of production, conservation, marketing and distribution in an integrated manner.

9.10 In realising these aims we have to take cognisance of the basic socioeconomic parameters governing agricultural growth during the eighties which are the increasing fragmentation of land holdings, imbalances in the diffusion of improved technologies in different areas and in the relative rate of growth of different crops.

9.11 The position with regard to the average size of a farm holding in all the States of India shows a trend towards a gradual reduction in the size of an operational holding (Annexure 9.1). Land consoli- dation has not taken place in many of the States in the country. Watershed management in un-irrigated areas, command area development in irrigated areas

and catchment area management in hilly regions which are the triple approaches to scientific water conservation and use have been rendered difficult due to fragmentation of holdings and absence of cooperative management.

9.12 An urgent pre-requisite for accelerating agricultural advance is the need for institutional arrangements for assisting small and marginal farmers to maximise the opportunities offered by a small farm for intensive agriculture and minimise the handicaps arising from the absence of land consolidation and levelling and the inability to invest on inputs and face risks. The major steps proposed to be taken during the plan period to help small and marginal farmers and share- croppers, both in irrigated and rainfed areas to derive advantage from improved technology, are the following:

(a) Extend the benefits envisaged under the Integrated Rural Development Programme to farming communities in all the blocks of the country (this has already been done with effect from 2 October, 1980) ;

(b) Help to organise farmers' agro-service centres which can provide relevant services in the area of village and farm operations, water conservation and management, plant protection, processing and marketing;

(d) Organise effective input supply services including credit;

(e) Provide the necessary assistance in the areas of post-harvest technology, particularly with regard to marketing through the rural godowns project; and

(f) Develop further on-going crop/animal credit insurance schemes to insulate farmers from losses due to reasons beyond their control.

9.13 Imbalances in regional development have partly resulted from disparities in progress in agriculture in different parts of the country. An analysis of the co-efficient of variation in per capita State incomes between 1960-61 and 1975-76 indicates that the maximum increase in disparities in per capita income occurred due to differential progress in the agricultural sector. States which have improved the relevant position with respect to per capita income have done so largely through their improved position with respect to agricultural incomes. The sharp contrast in productivity improvement in crops in different regions can be seen from the sharp differences in the progress made in increasing rice yields in different regions of the country since the introduction of the Intensive Agriculture District Programme in 1961. While the progress is striking in North- West India, there has been a near stagnation in rice yield in Eastern India. Thus the crucial role of agricultural progress in minimising variations in per capita income and regional imbalances in economic development is obvious. It is, therefore, proposed to initiate during the Sixth Plan period the following steps to bring about more rapid development of agriculture in the areas with a large untapped potential:

(a) It is proposed to strengthen further the research network in relatively less developed areas and to promote location-specific, research. In addition to the 21 existing Agricultural Universities, 2 new Agricul- tural Universities-one in the Jammu and Kashmir State and one in the South Bihar region will be established. A national grid of coordinated projects will cover tribal and all relatively less developed regions. The ICAR Research complex in the North Eastern Himalayan region and the agricultural colleges in Nagaland and Manipur will be greatly strengthened.

(b) The "Training and Visit System" of extension will be introduced in all the less developed areas in an appropriate form so that farming families are given adequate extension support. Mobile training teams will be organised where necessary. Additional Krishi Vigyan Kendras will be established in tribal, hilly and backward areas.

(c) In ecologically handicapped regions like desert, drought prone and flood prone areas, suitable programmes for minimising the adverse impact of droughts and floods will be introduced. Steps will be taken to restore the damage done to fragile hill ecosystems and to contain salinisation, alkalinity and other processes of desertification (i.e. all man-made processes which either destroy or diminish the biological potential of land).

(d) As more farmers begin to have products to sell in the market, their interest in scientific agriculture can be sustained only if there are opportunities for remunerative marketing. Therefore, the marketing infra- structure in the neglected areas will be developed in such a manner that both producers and consumers are benefited. Special attention will be paid to the stor- age, processing and marketing of horticultural and other perishable materials.

9.14 With regard to imbalances in the relative growth rate in different crops, the most urgent requirement today is the acceleration of the growth rate in the production of pulses and oilseeds. Poor plant population, inadequate plant protection, cultivation in marginal and un-irrigated areas under conditions of energy deprivation and lack of producer-oriented marketing are some of the factors which hinder the progress in improving the production of

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pulses and oilseeds. It is proposed to introduce corrective measures and to popularise the cultivation of these crops in all irrigated farming systems. Plant protection will be organised on an area basis, and quality seed production will be greatly expanded. For achieving a rapid spread of improved technology, suitable clusters of villages in appropriate blocks will be developed into "pulses and oilseed crops villages."

9.15 Agriculture is an instrument for income and employment generation; when productivity improves, it would be possible to generate more diversified opportunities for employment. More and more workers can be involved in the post-harvest phases of agriculture and in agro-industries. It is proposed to introduce a systems approach to agricultural production, conservation, consumption and trade. Although programmes in these areas are being handled by different Departments and Ministries of Government, functional linkages will be brought about so that all the requirements of the production- consumption chain are looked into in an integrated manner. In order to enable the farmers to optimise their income from small holdings, advice on land use planning will be given by the State Land Use Boards assisted by a Central Land Use Commission which will be set up during the Plan period. The Land Use Boards and the Central Land Use Commission will try to assist farmers in bringing about desired im- provements in land and water management based on considerations of ecology, economics, energy requirement and employment generation. The revised terms of reference of the Agricultural Prices Commission already stipulate that pricing of commodities could be used as an important instrument for bringing about desired changes in land use. Since land is individually owned, Government can only promote scientific land use through appropriate packages of incentives and disincentives.

9.16 Besides growth, the Sixth Plan will also lay stress on building a National Food Security System. Since there is no immediate prospect for the emergence of an International Food Security System, it is imperative that a National Food Security System is developed in the country. The National Food Security System will have the following major component programmes:

(a) Ecological Security: Any damage to the principal life support systems, such as soil and water, flora and fauna, would undermine the renewable base of agricultural wealth. Therefore, there is need for greater attention to all problems relating to soil and sea erosion, rising water table and the incidence of salinity and alkalinity and various other forms of desertification. The Central and State Land Use Boards will have toensure that the long-term and short-term goals ofagricultural production efforts are in harmony witheach other.

(b) TechnologicalSecurity: Growth with stability should be the majoraim of technology development. In areas like the Punjab, which have already reached high levels of production, there is need for ensuring the stability of production through improved soil and plant health care and post-harvest technology. In areas with untapped production potential, knowledge of the constraints responsible for the difference between potential and actual farm yields will have to be gathered through an inter-disciplinary constraints analysis. Above all, technologies for minimising the adverse impact of aberrant weather on agricultural production and for fighting the triple alliance of weeds, pests and pathogens will have to be developed for all major farming systems and farming regions.